Investigation of the nominal and effective propeller inflow for a family of inland waterway vessels

• Published in: Ocean engineering 2019-09, Vol.187, p.106180, Article 106180
• Main Authors: Friedhoff, Benjamin, Hoyer, Katja, List, Sven, Tenzer, Matthias
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Inland ships; PIV; RANSE; Scale model tests; Shallow water; Wake field
• ISSN: 0029-8018; 1873-5258
• DOI: 10.1016/j.oceaneng.2019.106180

Inland vessels operate in a wide range of waterway conditions and sometimes extremely shallow water, where the propeller inflow becomes critical. Knowledge of the wake field is of utmost importance for a proper and efficient design of the propulsion system. To gain a deeper understanding of the inflow conditions at different water depths, four representative inland vessels with the dimensions of a large Rhine vessel and different stern shapes were designed and built as scale models. For the detailed determination of the complex flow phenomena at the stern, a complementary approach of model tests, Stereo Particle Image Velocimetry (3C-PIV) and RANSE CFD calculations was chosen. While the measured resistance profiles differ negligibly between the designs, there are significant differences in the power demand. The integral wake fraction from the propulsion test does not adequately describe this behaviour. Finally, experimental and numerical flow fields could be compared for a deeper insight. •PIV and CFD studies on hull-propulsor interaction of inland ships in shallow water.•Small influence of hull shape in resistance, but distinct effects with propulsion.•Design optimization of inland ships for operating conditions of great importance.